Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Unwillingness |
UnwillingnessNoun1. The trait of being unwilling; "his unwillingness to cooperate vetoed every proposal I made". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "unwillingness" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1380. (references) |
Synonym: UnwillingnessSynonym: Disinclination. (additional references) |
| Antonym: willingness (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Unwillingness | Noun: unwillingness; Adjective: indisposition, indisposedness; disinclination, aversation; nolleity, nolition; renitence, renitency; reluctance; indifference; backwardness; Adjective: slowness; want of alacrity,want of readiness; indocility; (obstinacy). |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Unwillingness |
| English words defined with "unwillingness": afraid, Averseness ♦ decline, disinclination, do-nothing ♦ Grudgingness ♦ hesitancy, hesitation ♦ indisposition, inexorability, inexorableness, intolerance, Involuntariness ♦ loath, Loathness, loth ♦ mercilessness ♦ Nolition ♦ refuse, relentlessness, reluctance, Reluctancy, reluctant, Repugnancy, resistance ♦ stinginess, stubborn ♦ unmercifulness ♦ veracity. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "unwillingness": Vis Inertiae. (references) |
| Author | Quotation |
William Feather | Back of ninety-nine out of one-hundred assertions that a thing cannot be done is nothing, but the unwillingness to do it. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Title | Author | Quote |
King Richard III | Shakespeare, William | And I with all unwillingness will go. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | The inability or unwillingness of the patient to continue under medical supervision. (references) | |
The problem might stem from embarrassment over using a public toilet or unwillingness to stop playing and go to the bathroom. (references) | ||
Well-controlled studies are unavailable, and there is little prospect that such studies will be done. This is due largely to the unwillingness of patients to forgo treatment with the most "advanced" modality available. (references) | ||
Civil Liberties | Albania | All religious communities have criticized the Government for its unwillingness to grant them tax-exempt status. (references) |
Greece | According to press reports, the obstacles of a complex bureaucracy and the unwillingness of employers to pay social security contributions were the primary reasons for the limited ability of white cardholders to advance to the green card application process. (references) | |
Economic History | Egypt | These problems contributed to banks' unwillingness to provide new credit either to old customers or new applicants. (references) |
Human Rights | Kenya | Prison conditions are harsh and life threatening, due both to a lack of resources and to the Government's unwillingness to address deficiencies in the penal system. (references) |
Afghanistan | Independent investigations of these and other killings, including killings by the Taliban, were hindered by the continuing warfare and the unwillingness of local commanders to allow investigators to visit the areas in question. (references) | |
Malaysia | Among other criticisms, political activists mention the Commission's unwillingness to look into the inter-ethnic violence in the Kuala Lumpur slum of Kampung Medan, and human rights NGO's note the Commission's failure to insist on gaining timely access to the individuals detained in April under the ISA. (references) | |
Minorities | Kenya | Many factors contributed to interethnic conflicts, including the proliferation of guns, the commercialization of traditional cattle rustling, the weakening of state authority, the emergence of local militia leaders, the development of a modern warrior/bandit culture (distinct from the traditional culture), irresponsible local political leadership, shrinking economic prospects for affected groups, a regional drought, and the inability or unwillingness of security forces to stem the violence. (references) |
Albania | Minority leaders cite the Government's unwillingness to recognize the existence of ethnic Greek towns, such as Himara, that are not considered part of communist-era "minority zones"; to utilize Greek on official documents and on public signs in ethnic Greek areas; to address effectively crimes committed against ethnic Greeks, particularly allegations that communal property is being taken illegally by means of fraudulent documents and in some cases with complicity of the courts; to ascertain the size of the ethnic Greek population; and to include a higher number of ethnic Greeks in public administration. (references) | |
Political Economy | DOMINICAN REPUBLIC | A chaotic land tenure system and the unwillingness of large landowners to modernize impede investment in modern agricultural techniques. (references) |
Political Rights | Comoros | The other leaders did not indicate any unwillingness to abide by the terms of the agreement by year's end. (references) |
Travel | Ukraine | The legacy of centralized authority extending back for centuries, bureaucracy, red tape, and an unwillingness to take initiative have been imprinted on the developing Ukrainian business psyche. (references) |
Women | Nepal | There is a general unwillingness among citizens, and particularly among government authorities, to recognize violence against women as a problem. (references) |
Worker Rights | Paraguay | Principal problems included bottlenecks in the judicial system and the inability or unwillingness of the Government to enforce labor laws. (references) |
Ukraine | Victims often are reluctant to seek legal action against traffickers out of fear of reprisals or an unwillingness to tell their stories publicly. (references) | |
Tajikistan | There are no government programs aimed at preventing trafficking as a result of the government's unwillingness to publicly acknowledge the problem. (references) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Unwillingness" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 100.00% of the time. "Unwillingness" is used about 278 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 100% | 278 | 17,541 |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Language | Translations for "unwillingness"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Albanian | mosdashje (aversion, disinclination, dislike, indisposition, reluctance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arabic | عدم رغبة (reluctance), بغض (aversion, fierceness, odiousness, unpleasantness). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bulgarian | несъгласие (clash, discord, discrepancy, disharmony, dissent, jar, non-compliance, odds, rent, split, variance), неохота (chariness, disinclination, indisposition, reluctance), нежелание (aversion, disinclination, indisposition, reluctance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chinese | 不情愿. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Czech | nepovolnost, neochota (reluctance), nedobrovolnost. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Finnish | vastahakoisuus (disinclination, reluctance), haluttomuus (apathy, disinclination, listlessness). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | réticence, manque d'enthousiasme. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German | Widerwille (aversion, disgust, distaste, grudge, reluctancy, repugnance, repulsion). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | απροθυμία (disinclination, perfunctoriness, reluctance, reluctancy). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hebrew | אי רצון (disinclination, reluctance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hungarian | nem akarás. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indonesian | ketidakmauan (reluctancy), ketidakinginan (reluctancy). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian | riluttanza (querulousness, reluctance, tardiness). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Kanji | 已む無く (out of necessity, reluctance, unavoidably). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Katakana | やむなく (out of necessity, reluctance, unavoidably). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | illingnessunway нежелание (disinclination, indisposition, reluctance). (various references) renuencia (aversion, reluctance), mala gana. (various references) isteksizlik (aversion, disinclination, indisposition, reluctance, repugnance), gönülsüzlük (disinclination, indisposition, reluctance). (various references) sự miễn cưỡng sự thiếu thiện ý, sự không vui lòng, sự không bằng lòng (disaffection, displeasure, dissatisfaction, incompliance, incompliancy, malcontentedness). (various references) anfodlonrwydd (discontent), anfoddogrwydd (discontentment, dissatisfaction), anfodd (displeasure). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "unwillingness": unwillingnesses. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "unwillingness" (pronounced unwi"lingnus) |
| 8 | -w i" l i ng n u s | willingness. |
| 5 | -i ng n u s | nothingness. |
| 3 | -n u s | abruptness, absoluteness, acuteness, aggressiveness, agribusiness, airworthiness, alertness, aloofness, alumnus, Anas, androgynous, anise, appropriateness, arbitrariness, assertiveness, astuteness, asynchronous, attentiveness, attractiveness, awareness, awfulness, awkwardness, backwardness, badness, bagginess, baldness, bearishness, bigness, bitterness, bituminous, blackness, blandness, bleakness, blindness, bluntness, boldness, bonus, boorishness, brashness, brightness, bullishness, business, callousness, calmness, carelessness, casualness, cautiousness, cavernous, cheapness, chitinous, cleanliness, cleanness, cleverness, closeness, cloudiness, clumsiness, cockiness, cohesiveness, coldness, Colonus, combativeness, compactness, competitiveness, completeness, consciousness, contagiousness, contentiousness, contrariness, Conus, coolness, correctness, coziness, craziness, creativeness, creditworthiness, creepiness, crispness, crookedness, cuteness, dampness, darkness, Deaconess, deadliness, deafness, decisiveness, defensiveness, destructiveness, directness, disingenuousness, distinctiveness, divisiveness, dizziness, dreariness, drowsiness, drunkenness, dryness, dullness, eagerness, earnestness, edginess, effectiveness, elusiveness, emptiness, evenness, exogenous, eyewitness, faintness, fairness, farsightedness, fastness, fickleness, firmness, fitness, flatness, fondness, foolishness, forcefulness, forgiveness, forthrightness, foulness, fractiousness, frankness, freshness, friendliness, frothiness, fullness, funniness, furnace, gauntness, gayness, gelatinous, gentleness, genuineness, genus, ghastliness, gluttonous, goodness, governess, graciousness, greatness, greenness, grimness, hairiness, handedness, happiness, hardness, harmfulness, harness, harshness, heinous, helplessness, highness, hoarseness, holiness, homelessness, homesickness, homogenous, hopefulness, hopelessness, humanness, idleness, illness, inclusiveness, indebtedness, indecisiveness, indigenous, ineffectiveness, ineptness, inertness, intravenous, intrusiveness, inventiveness, joblessness, Johannes, kindness, larcenous, largeness, lateness, lawlessness, laziness, lenis, lightfastness, lightness, likeness, liveliness, loneliness, lousiness, luminous, madness, Manus, meanness, membranous, menace, Minas, mindedness, minus, monotonous, mountainous, mutinous, narrowness, nastiness, nearsightedness, neatness, nervousness, newness, niceness, niggardliness, nitrogenous, nonbusiness, nonpoisonous, nosiness, numbness, ominous, oneness, onus, openness, orderliness, otherness, outrageousness, outspokenness, pandanus, peacefulness, penis, permissiveness, persuasiveness, pervasiveness, pettiness, playfulness, poisonous, politeness, polygynous, pompousness, possessiveness, powerlessness, preparedness, queasiness, quickness, quietness, raciness, randomness, rareness, ravenous, rawness, readiness, reasonableness, rebelliousness, recklessness, redness, remoteness, resistiveness, resourcefulness, responsiveness, restiveness, restlessness, restrictiveness, richness, righteousness, rightness, riskiness, robustness, roominess, roughness, rowdiness, rudeness, ruinous, ruthlessness, sacredness, sadness, Salinas, sameness, scantiness, secretiveness, selfishness, selflessness, sensitiveness, separateness, seriousness, shakiness, shallowness, sharpness, shortness, shortsightedness, shrewdness, shyness, sickness, silliness, sinus, skittishness, slackness, sleepiness, sloppiness, slovenliness, slowness, sluggishness, slyness, smallness, smoothness, smugness, softness, solitariness, soundness, spiritedness, squeamishness, starkness, steadfastness, steadiness, steepness, sternness, stiffness, stillness, stinginess, stoutness, strangeness, stubbornness, sturdiness, suddenness, suggestiveness, sweetness, swiftness, tardiness, tartness, tastiness, tenderness, tetanus, thickness, thinness, thoroughness, thoughtfulness, tightness, timeliness, tiredness, togetherness, toughness, trustworthiness, truthfulness, ugliness, unconsciousness, uneasiness, unfairness, unhappiness, uniqueness, unpleasantness, unwieldiness, usefulness, vagueness, vastness, venous, viciousness, villainous, vindictiveness, vividness, voluminous, wariness, wastefulness, waterishness, weakness, weariness, weightlessness, weirdness, wellness, wetness, whiteness, wholeness, wholesomeness, wickedness, wilderness, wildness, wimpiness, wistfulness, witness, wonderfulness, worldliness, worthiness, wryness. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "e-g-i-i-l-l-n-n-n-s-s-u-w" | |
-2 letters: willingness. | |
-4 letters: linguines, swellings, unselling, unwilling. | |
-5 letters: enisling, ensiling, insulins, linguine, sinewing, snelling, swelling, swilling, swingles, ugliness, unsewing, unslings, wiliness, wingless, winnings. | |
| Words containing the letters "e-g-i-i-l-l-n-n-n-s-s-u-w" | |
+2 letters: unwillingnesses. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Hexadecimal (or equivalents, 770AD-1900s) (references)55 6E 77 69 6C 6C 69 6E 67 6E 65 73 73 |
| Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519; backwards) (references)
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| American Sign Language (origins from 1620-1817 in Italy and, especially, France) (references)
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| Semaphore (1791, in France) (references)
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| Braille (1829, in France) (references)
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Morse Code (1836) (references)..- -. .--. .. .-.. .-.. .. -. --. -. . ... ... |
| Dancing Men (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1903) (references)
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Binary Code (1918-1938, probably earlier) (references)01010101 01101110 01110111 01101001 01101100 01101100 01101001 01101110 01100111 01101110 01100101 01110011 01110011 |
HTML Code (1990) (references)U n w i l l i n g n e s s |
ISO 10646 (1991-1993) (references)0055 006E 0077 0069 006C 006C 0069 006E 0067 006E 0065 0073 0073 |
| British Sign Language (Fingerspelling, BSL; 1992, British Deaf Association Dictionary of British Sign Language) (references)
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Encryption (beginner's substitution cypher): (references)55808975787875807380718585 |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Quotations: Familiar | 5. Quotations: Fiction 6. Quotations: Non-fiction 7. Usage Frequency 8. Translations: Modern | 9. Derivations 10. Rhymes 11. Anagrams 12. Orthography | 13. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
